原発性脊髄腫瘍の疫学

Epidemiology of Primary Spinal Cord Tumors

　本研究の目的は，中部地区11施設における原発性脊髄腫瘍427手術症例を検討し，腫瘍の局在・病理診断・高位・頻度・性別などを調査することである．局在は，硬膜内髄外が半数以上を占め，次いで砂時計腫が約20％であった．診断は神経FURO腫が約50％を占め，次いで髄膜腫・上衣腫・血管系腫瘍の順であった．局在・診断ともに本邦の以前の報告と同様の結果であった．国際比較を行うと，神経FURO腫と髄膜腫の頻度に地域差がみられた．アジア地域では髄膜腫よりも神経FURO腫が多かったが，アジア地域以外では髄膜腫が神経FURO腫よりも多いか，または髄膜腫と神経FURO腫が同等の頻度であった．本邦において，脊髄腫瘍の疫学に関する詳細な報告は非常に少ない．今後は本邦での学会レベルの症例集積が望まれる．

　The purpose of this study was to investigate 427 primary spinal cord tumors diagnosed at 11 hospitals in the Chubu area of Japan between 2000 and 2006.　Incidence rates, gender, age distribution, and tumor localization were surveyed, and the data were compared with data in series from other areas of Japan and other countries.　The localization and relative incidence of the tumors were similar to those of other series in Japan.　Except in Asian countries (Far East), the incidence of meningiomas in our series was the same or higher than the incidence of nerve sheath tumors, whereas the incidence of nerve sheath tumors was higher in Asian countries than that of meningiomas.　Only a few detailed reports on the epidemiology of primary spinal tumors in Japan have been published.　Population-based statistical data on primary spinal cord tumors are needed to make progress in the study and treatment of spinal cord tumors.